PARIS — The European Space Agency stepped up to be Arianespace’s first customer for the next-generation Ariane 6 rocket, while keeping Soyuz as a backup option.

Signing the contract on behalf of the European Commission and the European Union, ESA agreed to launch four Galileo navigation satellites two at a time on Ariane 6 rockets. The missions will both use the Ariane 62, the lighter version equipped with two side-boosters, and will launch from Europe’s Guiana Space Centre in French Guiana in late-2020 and mid-2021.

ArianeGroup, formerly Airbus Safran Launchers, is building the Ariane 6, with ESA overseeing the rocket’s procurement and architecture. Arianespace has a first-ever demonstration flight of the Ariane 6 on July 16, 2020.

“Arianespace is especially proud to have won this first launch contract for the Ariane 6 from its loyal customers and partners, the European Commission (DG Growth) and ESA,” Stéphane Israël, Arianespace CEO, said in a Sept. 14 statement.

ESA’s contract includes the ability to rely on Soyuz, also launching from the Guiana Space Centre, if the Ariane 6 is not able to complete the mission. Arianespace launched 14 of the 18 Galileo satellites currently in orbit using Soyuz rockets; an Ariane 5 launched the most recent four.

The Ariane 6 and Vega C rockets are intended to replace Arianespace’s existing launch family of the Ariane 5, Soyuz and Vega, assuring European access to space with vehicles that can compete more effectively with SpaceX and other rising launch competitors.

Arianespace has another four-satellite Galileo launch using the Ariane 5 “Evolution Storable” version in December, followed by another in summer 2018.

Galileo satellites weigh roughly 750-kilograms each and operate in a 23,000-kilometer medium-Earth orbit. The European Union owns Galileo.

This article originally appeared in the July 3, 2017 issue of SpaceNews magazine.

On March 1, 2015, Boeing inaugurated the all-electric satellite with the launch of the ABS-3A and Eutelsat 115 West B geostationary spacecraft on a single SpaceX Falcon 9. Eight days later, the French space agency CNES committed $30 million to spark Europe’s all-electric propulsion efforts.

The CNES investment was influenced by industry forecasts predicting 50 percent of commercial telecommunications satellites will be all-electric by 2020.

Boeing built the industry’s first all-electric satellites as part of a watershed four-satellite deal won in 2012 from satellite telecom operators ABS and Satmex (the latter is now part of Eutelsat). In the wake of that deal, companies and space agencies around the world upped their investments in electric propulsion with the expectation that the technology, which has been used for decades in science missions, was now about to go mainstream in the commercial sector.

Two years later, the predictions on which CNES based its investments are so far right on track. According to Northern Sky Research Senior Analyst Carolyn Belle, operators ordered 26 electrically propelled satellites from 2012 to 2016 — 20 all-electric spacecraft, and six “hybrids” that will rely on chemical propellant for orbit raising. Belle said NSR tallied 106 satellites ordered over that four-year period, equating to roughly 25 percent of satellites using some form of electric propulsion.

Satellite manufacturers are now trying to figure out how to maximize their share of the electric propulsion market while not abandoning more conservative customers.

“Our takeaway out of discussions with all of the primes worldwide is that the run towards electric propulsion is clear, but a lot of primes want to remain flexible, meaning they have the possibility to offer their customers each kind of propulsion for different missions,” said Josef Koecher, head of ArianeGroup’s orbital propulsion division that the company inherited from Airbus Defence and Space. “There will be a market for chemical, there will be a market for electric, and there will be a market for hybrid. You have to have the ability to fly chemical and you also have to have the ability to fly electric.”

ArianeGroup’s orbital propulsion division, located in Lampoldshausen, Germany, became part of the Airbus-Safran joint venture when the company formed in 2015. Koecher said the propulsion company sold products to other satellite manufacturers globally before the joint venture formed, and continues to do so now, averaging 10 integrated propulsion system sales annually.

Electric propulsion’s appeal is its ability to drastically lower a spacecraft’s wet mass, or the mass of the spacecraft and its propellant, because of the low-mass (and volume) of electric propellants. Compared to chemical propulsion, an all-electric satellite can weigh 50 percent less. Satellite operators can use that free space to pack more payloads on the spacecraft bus, or shrink the satellite for a lower-cost launch.

Electric propulsion can come with trade-offs though, according Mike Glogowski, director of propulsion at Orbital ATK.

“They produce more drag in some cases, certainly for Hall [-effect] thrusters versus, say, pure ion thrusters,” he said at the Satellite 2017 conference in March. “They can also engender erosion of surface materials, which likewise would put deposits on your spacecraft surfaces. They also have potential electro-dynamic interference effects that all have to be accounted for, and likewise they are also very expensive compared to a heritage chemical system. But even with all those features they have become quite a key offering now among many satellite prime contractors.”

The biggest trade off is time to orbit; chemical propulsion gets the job done in days while electric takes months. Some operators have elected to pursue hybrid systems to get the best of both worlds, but the added mass of hybrid systems can sometimes negate the benefits of electric propulsion in the first place, Glogowski said.

The electric feel shows no signs of wearing off, especially now that satellite manufacturers feel having electric propulsion is a must-have option for their customers. Launch providers too bear witness to this trend. Arianespace’s second-ever Soyuz mission to geostationary transfer orbit, SES-15, was possible because the all-electric satellite weighed just 2,300 kilograms (the first, Hispasat-36-W1, used chemical propellant, but was the first of Europe’s SmallGEO program, which was an all-electric version under way). International Launch Services’ Proton rocket variants target lower-mass satellites, which have become increasingly popular as a way to reduce launch costs. OneWeb’s first-generation mega-constellation of 900 satellites also plans to use electric propulsion.

Electric propulsion still has challenges to overcome to gain the next 25 percent of the total commercial market. Costs have come down, but orbit raising times of four to eight months means only operators that can stomach long waits can consider it. Orbital ATK’s Glogowski said one technique manufacturers are considering is higher power electric propulsion, drawing more heavily on a spacecraft’s batteries to shorten the commute to the GEO-arc. Launch providers are also trying to deploy satellites closer to GEO — SES-15 separated from Soyuz about 5,000 kilometers from GEO to cut a month off its orbit raising time.

“We have to adapt ourselves to the mission,” said ArianeGroup’s Koecher. “The case is not getting the fastest orbit-raising time ever. That is important and it would be great to have it, but on the other side we also have to incorporate all the other factors: the transponders you can take with you, the overall mass of the satellite, and the launcher. All those pieces of the puzzle make the case in the end.”

Production and tests of the first flight model for the VINCI engine combustion chamber, in Ottobrunn, Munich. Photo: Arianegroup.

Airbus Safran Launchers, which became ArianeGroup on July 1, has begun construction of the combustion chamber of the first flight model of the Vinci engine at its Ottobrun site near Munich.

Vinci is the re-ignition motor of Ariane 6’s upper stage. Construction has begun following more than 120 successful tests using development models. According to the company, this is a key step towards the success of the first Ariane 6 flight, scheduled for 2020.

The new re-ignition engine will increase the operational flexibility of the Ariane 6 launcher, which the company stated can fulfill a range of missions, including the launch of constellations. Arianegroup is lead contractor for Europe’s Ariane 5 and Ariane 6 launcher families, responsible for both design and the entire production chain, up to and including marketing by its Arianespace subsidiary, as well as for the missiles of the French oceanic deterrent force.

According to Arianegroup, its new identity reflects its existence as an international group and marks its commitment to the current and future success of its large-scale programs as well as its space equipment activities.

Munich, Germany (SPX) Jun 29, 2017
Airbus Safran Launchers, which will be known as ArianeGroup on July 1, 2017, has begun construction of the combustion chamber of the first flight model of the VINCI engine at its Ottobrun site near Munich.
Construction was begun following more than 120 successful tests, using development models. This is a key step towards the success of the first Ariane 6 flight, scheduled for 2020. Перейти к новостиКлючевые слова:Серия РН Ариан, Airbus Safran Launchers, Safran

Paris (SPX) Jun 26, 2017
The European Space Agency and Airbus Safran Launchers, the 50/50 joint-venture set up by the Airbus and Safran groups, which will become ArianeGroup on July 1, have signed, at the Paris Air Show, the first tranche of the development contract for the future Prometheus LOx-methane engine.
"This signing underlines our determination to prepare now for the future of Europe's launchers beyond 20 Перейти к новостиКлючевые слова:Европейское космическое агентство, Airbus Safran Launchers, Safran, Prometheus

The European Space Agency (ESA) and Airbus Safran Launchers, the 50/50 joint-venture set up by the Airbus and Safran groups, which will become ArianeGroup on July 1, signed the first tranche of the development contract for the future Prometheus LOx-methane engine at the Paris Air Show. Prometheus is a demonstrator running on Liquid Oxygen (LOx) and methane for a reusable engine. Applications deriving from it will be able to equip future European launchers as of 2030.

The Prometheus project began in November 2015, with partnership investments between the French Space Agency (CNES) and ArianeGroup, but took on a truly European dimension in December 2016, at the last ESA ministerial level conference in Lucerne, Switzerland. Prometheus was then allocated a budget of more than 80 million euros ($89.5 million).

The contract signed today also marked the addition of European industrial partners to the Prometheus demonstrator project, including Avio from Italy, GKN from Sweden, Safran AeroBooster from Belgium, and the German and French entities of ArianeGroup. The first tests are scheduled for 2020 in Lampoldhausen, Germany, on the site of the German aerospace agency (DLR).

The companies signed the contract Thursday with the European Space Agency, which procures the satellites on behalf of the EU.

The companies won the contract despite Brexit-related complications for U.K.-based SSTL, which will require some kind of agreement to allow the company to continue working on classified parts of the Galileo payload after the country exits the EU. [BBC]

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The leadership of the Air Force and key members of the House Armed Services Committee are at odds over establishing a “Space Corps.” Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Ala.), chairman of the strategic forces subcommittee, pushed back against criticism of his Space Corps proposal by the Secretary of the Air Force and the Air Force Chief of Staff. At a markup of a defense authorization bill Thursday, Rogers responded to Air Force comments that a Space Corps was not needed. “I have to say I’ve been shocked by the response by the Air Force leadership,” he said, saying he would press ahead with language in the bill that would create a Space Corps within the Air Force. [SpaceNews]

OneWeb has won FCC approval for its broadband satellite constellation. The FCC said Thursday it approved plans by OneWeb to provide broadband services in the United States, a key milestone in the company’s development of its satellite system. The FCC added it is examining several other applications for satellite constellations to provide similar services in the U.S. [Washington Post]

India launched a PSLV carrying 31 satellites overnight. The Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle lifted off from the Satish Dhawan Space Center at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Thursday night. The rocket placed into a sun-synchronous orbit a Cartosat-2 Earth imaging satellite as well as 30 smallsat secondary payloads, including eight satellites for Spire and three for Sky and Space Global. [The Hindu]

Layoffs have hit Space Systems Loral because of a downturn in commercial satellite orders. The company confirmed Thursday it laid off employees at its California manufacturing facility, citing an “extended slowdown” in orders for commercial GEO satellites. The company declined to say how many people were laid off, but a source familiar with the layoffs said eight percent of the company’s more than 2,000 employees were affected. Other satellite manufacturers have also reported weak demand for GEO satellites, not expecting the market to rebound until 2018 or 2019. [SpaceNews]

ESA has started funding a new reusable engine. The agency has provided a first tranche of funding for Prometheus, an engine being developed by ArianeGroup that uses liquid oxygen and methane propellants and promises to cost one-tenth the price of the Vulcain 2 engine used on the Ariane 5. Prometheus is on track to begin test firings in 2020, although ESA does not contemplate using it in future launch vehicles until 2030. [SpaceNews]

NASA has kicked off an independent review of its next flagship astronomy mission, WFIRST. The agency announced Thursday the membership of the review panel, which will examine any cost and schedule issues with the spacecraft. That review will postpone plans to move the mission into Phase B of development, previously scheduled for this fall. A report last year warned of potential cost increases for WFIRST that could adversely affect other NASA astrophysics programs. [SpaceNews]

ESA is seeking to privatize its Space Rider uncrewed spaceplane under development. Space Rider is being developed by Thales Alenia Space and Lockheed Martin, with a first test flight scheduled for 2020 on a Vega-C rocket. Five more test flights would follow as Arianespace, who would operate the spaceplane commercially, decides how many reusable vehicles to build for commercial flights. ESA foresees using Space Rider to fly microgravity research and other payloads for an estimated $9,200 per kilogram. [SpaceNews]

An ESA initiative with industry will look for roles satellites can play in 5G networks. The Satellite for 5G initiative, planned for 2018 through 2020, would examine the roles satellites, both in low Earth orbit and geostationary orbit, can play in supporting 5G networks. The upcoming demonstrations as part of the initiative will focus on various 5G applications such as connected transport solutions, public safety and entertainment. [SpaceNews]

WASHINGTON — The European Space Agency began funding a reusable rocket engine anticipated to be ready for a test-fire demonstration in 2020, the same year as the first launch of the future Ariane 6 rocket.

ESA and Airbus Safran Launchers, the 50-50 joint venture between Airbus and Safran that is rebranding as ArianeGroup, signed a contract to develop Prometheus, a liquid- oxygen-and-methane-fueled engine that would cost 1 million euros ($1.1 million) per copy, or a tenth of what Ariane 5’s Vulcain 2 first-stage engine costs to produce. ArianeGroup is working on Prometheus in parallel with development of Ariane 6, which will initially rely on the expendable Vulcain 2.1 engine.

Prometheus, which started out as a small, joint research initiative between the French space agency CNES and Airbus Safran Launchers, was adopted by ESA in December. ESA foresees the engine entering service around 2030 on future European launch vehicles, not necessarily Ariane 6.

“This signing underlines our determination to prepare now for the future of Europe’s launchers beyond 2030, while pulling out all the stops to ensure an Ariane 6 first flight in 2020,” Alain Charmeau, CEO of ArianeGroup, said in a June 22 statement. “Those two approaches based on continuous competitiveness and innovations are perfectly complementary.”

ESA allocated more than 80 million euros to Prometheus at its December 2016 ministerial conference. The agency did not disclose how much of that money it released with the signing of today’s contract.

Now that it’s an ESA program, Prometheus will see additional industrial partners join ArianeGroup in developing the engine. New partners include Italy-based Avio, manufacturer of the Vega rocket; GKN, a Swedish supplier for Ariane 5 and Ariane 6 components; and Safran’ Belgian subsidiary Safran AeroBooster. The companies intend to leverage new manufacturing methods such as 3D printing, predictive maintenance and digital control, and to test the engine at the German space agency DLR’s Lampoldhausen engine test facility.

Paris (SPX) Jun 22, 2017
Arianespace, which is sharing a chalet with ArianeGroup at this year's Paris Air Show, is focused on the future with the announcement of a first contract for the future Vega C launcher, while gearing up for the operation of Ariane 6.
With an order book of 53 launches for Ariane 5, Soyuz and Vega, and fully engaged in marketing Ariane 6, Arianespace continues to prove its ability to satisfy Перейти к новостиКлючевые слова:Вега, Серия РН Ариан, Airbus Safran Launchers, Arianespace

MT LAUREL, New Jersey — Fresh off the successful launch of an all-electric satellite on an Ariane 5 rocket, satellite fleet operator Eutelsat announced June 2 a commitment to launch three more satellites with Arianespace, and signaled an early interest in using the next-generation Ariane 6.

Paris-based Eutelsat said the Eutelsat-7C satellite from Space Systems Loral, the African Broadband Satellite from Thales Alenia Space and the first Eutelsat Quantum satellite from Airbus Defence and Space will all launch with the European launch provider.

“I believe this puts us in the right conditions for our upcoming discussions on Ariane 6,” Yohann Leroy, Eutelsat’s deputy CEO and chief technical officer, said in a post-launch speech at the Guiana Space Centre’s Jupiter control room.

Ariane 6, the successor to Ariane 5, is under development by ArianeGroup, the new name for Airbus Safran Launchers, and is expected to be roughly half the cost of the Ariane 5. The rocket’s first launch is scheduled for 2020.

Arianespace plans to launch Eutelsat-7C in 2018, followed by Eutelsat Quantum and the African Broadband Satellite in 2019. Chief Executive Stephane Israel said all three will launch on Ariane 5 rockets.

“Our hope is that Ariane 6 will subsequently take over so that we can help Eutelsat meet its objectives even more efficiently,” he said in a June 2 written statement.

Eutelsat’s latest satellite, the Airbus Defence and Space-built Eutelsat-172b, launched June 1 on the lower berth of an Ariane 5. The heavier ViaSat-2 satellite for ViaSat took the launcher’s upper position.

Eutelsat has one other satellite, Eutelsat 5 West B, assigned to an International Launch Services Proton rocket mission in 2018. A joint Orbital ATK-Airbus Defence and Space manufacturing team is building the satellite.

In March, Eutelsat also announced it would launch a yet-to-be-ordered satellite on Blue Origin’s future New Glenn reusable rocket.

The joint venture of Airbus and Safran was created in 2015 as part of a reorganization of the European launch vehicle industry that also included plans to develop the next-generation Ariane 6 launch vehicle.

The name change, which was announced Wednesday but takes effect July 1, is intended to provide greater brand coherence with its subsidiary Arianespace. [Airbus Safran Launchers]

The second Long March 5 rocket is being assembled for a launch next month. The rocket, China’s largest launch vehicle, is scheduled to launch the Shijian-18 in June from the Wenchang Satellite Launch Centre. The satellite, weighing an estimated seven metric tons, will be the one of the heaviest satellites launched to date to geostationary orbit and will demonstrate a new satellite bus and high-throughput communications technologies. [gbtimes]

HP says a new computer technology could support future human missions to Mars. Hewlett Packard Enterprise said its “memory-driven computing” technology can ensure continued advances in computing capability even if Moore’s Law of increasing processing power breaks down. Such a computing system, the company argues, could be ideal for human missions to Mars, serving as a substitute for Mission Control far from Earth. [GeekWire]

Paris, France (SPX) May 17, 2017
Airbus Safran Launchers, the joint venture created at the initiative of the Airbus and Safran groups in order to reorganize the European launchers sector, is to be known as ArianeGroup. The change in corporate name will be effective as of July 1, 2017.
This change in identity, embodied in one of Europe's biggest successes, is the logical next step following the decision of the ESA Member S Перейти к новостиКлючевые слова:Европейское космическое агентство, Safran, Airbus Safran Launchers